Rev Billy Wetewea at the AUT in Auckland. 25 October 2024 Photo: RNZ Pacific / Lydia Lewis
A Kanak leader from the Protestant Church of Kanaky New Caledonia, attending a Pacific solidarity forum in Aotearoa, says connecting with Pacific activists has given him the chance to feel hope again after months of riots in the French territory.
Reverend Billy Wetewea told RNZ Pacific on the sidelines of Te Hui Oranga o te Moana nui a Kiwa, a conference in Auckland this week, that the indigenous peoples of New Caledonia are fighting for their humanity and dignity.
He said being present in a room filled with Pacific peoples from countries across the region has reminded him that he is not alone.
"We are descendants of fierce warriors and navigators," Wetewea said, adding that it "should give us the strength and fire to continue the legacy of those who have walked before us and passed away, for us to carry the fight for our next new generation."
"That is something that I felt strong here in Aotearoa."
A Pacific Islands Forum leaders' high-level "strictly observational" mission headed by the Tongan Prime Minister Hu'akavameiliku has arrived in Nouméa on Sunday.
The delegation includes Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, along with Solomon Islands Foreign Affairs Minister Peter-Shanel Agovaka.
Louis Mapou speaks with French President Emmanuel Macron during a signing ceremony at APEC Haus in Port Moresby on July 28, 2023. Photo: AFP / Ludovic MARIN
Almost 7000 security personnel with armoured vehicles have been deployed from mainland France to New Caledonia to quell further unrest.
Thirteen people have died since the violence broke out in May, including 11 Kanaks and two French police officers.
One hundred and sixty-nine people have been injured, and more than 2000 people have been arrested in the past five months.
This week, Rabuka said he would be taking a back seat during the mission and cautioned the Kanak leaders to "be very, very reasonable about what they're asking for" form Paris, adding he told the Kanaky movement when they started "don't slap the hand that has fed you".
"So have a good disassociation arrangement when you become independent, make sure you part as friends," he added.
Rev Wetewea said comments like Rabuka's have led him to question the "neutrality" of the PIF mission.
"I am questioning, not the legitimacy of this visit, but the neutrality of it," Wetewea said.
He wants to know if the leaders will be fair to what is really happening in his homeland.
Rev Wetewea said the issue that led to the PIF mission being deferred in August, was around tensions between local government and Paris.
He said New Caledonia's President Louis Mapou reminded Pacific leaders he was the one who called for the meeting in the first place, and that the PIF is going to New Caledonia at his request as a full member of PIF, which Paris is not.
"I hope that [the programme] will also fairly represent all the people in New Caledonia, especially the community on the ground, the youth and the mothers who are struggling in the community and on the ground," he said.
When asked if he had hope, Rev Wetewea replied: "We need hope."
"We are hope because we are still alive and we are still fighting, but our hope is toward a country that will be developed for the wellbeing of everyone in the country," he said.
"In our discussion with the youth and the community we are involved in, it is not only when we speak about our fight as Kanak people. It is not only for the Kanaks.
"We are fighting for our humanity."
The Pacific leaders' three-day mission from 27-29 October is supported by the PIF secretary general Baron Waqa and senior officials, with the guidance of the French State and New Caledonia government.
According to the PIF, they will tour Nouméa and visit with stakeholders impacted by the recent unrest, including New Caledonian political parties, youth, and the impacted communities and dialogues with the private, health, and education sectors.
Hu'akavameiliku told RNZ Pacific he is not going to preempt any solutions whatsoever.
New Caledonia government spokesperson Charles Wea told RNZ Pacific leaders will have the chance to hear from all sides involved in the unrest.
A document will then be drafted on their findings, which will be taken to the PIF foreign ministers meeting.
Following that, the findings will be presented to the PIF members in Solomon Islands at next years leaders meeting, where a decision on how the Pacific will engage going forward will be made.